Howl
by NeonZangetsu
Summary: Every soul reaper needs a zanpakutou, every zanpaktou needs a soul reaper. No matter how much you they may wish they had another, a zanpakutou is a shinigami's partner, till death do them part. IchigoxZabimaru. Fluff, Romance, Violence, etc.
1. Howl at the Moon

**_Howl at the Moon_**

Renji, shinigami of Zaraki Kenpachi's division, also known as squad eleven, had a problem. He'd just been transferred here, and quite frankly, he wasn't too happy about it. Sure, he loved a good brawl just as much as anyone, however, the first impression of his new squadmates not to mention his _captain_ was rather...intimidating.

And once they'd found out that he didn't even know the _name _of his zanpaktou....

Well, let us just say that the results had been less than pleasant. To make matters worse, Zaraki-taichou said that a man who couldn't fight wasn't a man at all, and he had one day to shape his ass up or he was gone. By gone, that meant transferring to the next available division, and THAT meant being a subordinate of Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi.

Now, poor Renji didn't know _what _he wanted, or rather, what he wanted to do with himself. However, Abarai Renji knew that he did NOT want to be transferred to the twelfth division, under the watchful eye of that deranged madman. So he'd decided that he wanted to find the name of his zanpaktou. And the only way he could think of doing so was to, well...

Challenge Kenpachi Zaraki to a fight, or so Ikkaku-san had told him. Surely a near death experience would be enough to provoke his zanpaktou into emerging, right? Unfortunately, before Renji had even paused to consider _Yumichika's_suggestion of actually meditating, he'd gone ahead with Ikkaku's suggestion.

Now here he lay, facedown in a puddle of his own blood, his eyes dull and lifeless as Kenpachi Zaraki pulled the nodachi out of his chest.

But imminent death was not the cause of Renji's current dilemma.

Two beings stood before him, and they couldn't be more un-alike. One, an intimidating man with long hair dressed in an all black cloak. His eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, the opaque lenses doing nothing to betray his gaze.

The other, a well endowed woman with green fur, rough hair, and a chain around her waist. Attached to the chain, which ended in a collar, was a boy, dressed in all white, and balanced on a serpentine like tail.

They seemed to be waiting for something, for neither had said anything, but the woman and the boy had an almost expectant look on their faces, as if they were waiting for something.

The man, however, remained silent, his gaze locked with Renji's. There was not the slightest hint of anticipation on his rugged face, instead he just stood there, arms hidden deep within the folds of his cape.

Suddenly, it occured to Renji that he both needed and wanted a combat type zanpaktou. And if physical appearances were anything to go by, then the sinister looking man in black was _obviously_ the better choice. And so, with this in mind, he raised a weak, trembling hands towards _him._

A brief look of horror passed across the visage of woman, but before she could say anything, she vanished, dissapearing into whisps of smoke, the snake boy following after her moments later.

Aside from the fact that he survived to live another day, Renji wouldn't remember much of what happened next, just that the man quirked an eyebrow, nodded, and uttered one word as he knelt down to place a hand on Renji's shoulder.

"Zangetsu."

--

Depressed, heartbroken, and alone, Zabimaru could only wander the Sereitei. Renji's connection to Rukia was so strong that he'd actually left a trace of his reaitsu on the Kuchiki girl, and so, Zabimaru followed after her, never seen, but always there, barely a shimmer, and growing weaker with every passing year.

Now, they looked on, sullenly following after her as Kuchiki Rukia left for the world of living. However, as they were often wont to do, the two soon found themselves bickering once more, just as always....

--

Chimpette retreated her fist, and said in return, "You idiot, I wasn't talking _about _Renji. I was just saying that I didn't like him. That goddamn sonnova bitch, its his fault this happened to us in the first place!"

"That's talking about him. What are you, stupid? OW! Quit it!"

"Don't call me stupid- you're the one who's not even paying attention to me."

"Why are you making such a big deal out of it?" Snakey ducked another blow from the woman's fist, and smirked. "Ha! You missed! OW! Why do you keep hitting me? It hurts, you know."

"I know. That's why I have to keep hitting you- to knock some sense into that stupid little brain of yours!"

"Well I heard that every time you hit someone on the head, he loses ten brain cells. So that backfired on you, didn't it? Hey, why are you-? Whoa! Missed again! And again! … Stop trying to hit me; it's getting annoying. I said quit it. I said QUIT IT! Now who's the one who's not listening?"

"Hey, if you're not gonna listen to me, I'm not gonna listen to you."

"I told you, I _was_listening. I knew you said something about Renji."

"But you didn't know _what_ I was saying about him."

"Who cares? I still knew he was the topic of what you were talking about." The boy rose up in the air, supported by his snake tail, and glared at his companion. "I don't get why you're so worked up over me eating a stupid piece of fruit, and not catching everything you were saying. You were probably just talking to yourself again."

"What was that?" Chimpette growled. "Are you saying that I'm some old lady who just rambles nonsense to herself all the time?"

"What the-? I never said that, you senile old cow!"

"Do you hear yourself? You just called me old! And don't…"

"OW!"

"… Call me a cow! You're one to talk about size, you little shrimp."

At her words, Snakey bared his thorn-sharp fangs and hissed furiously.

"Scary, scary," Chimpette sneered. "Monkeys aren't afraid of snakes, you know."

"Well it's not my fault if snakes are naturally smaller than baboons. At least I don't have a huge ass." Snakey retorted. The corner of his mouth twitched upwards. He knew that his comment would piss her off.

"What did you just say?!" Chimpette roared.

Snakey smirked, and then opened his mouth to continue his insults, when a confused look suddenly came across his face. He frowned, and sunk back onto the ground, landing on his own two feet. Chimpette watched him in puzzlement, and then the same look of confusion settled on her face.

"Hey, did you feel that?"

They _both _felt it now, a strange, pulling sensation. Then, the rooftop they were sitting on, began to distort and blur, as if someone had spun around one too many times and couldn't see straight. Snakey and Chimpette exchanged another anxious glance. They'd just felt Rukia's reaitsu vanish and reappear inside _someone else._

"Eh?"

Before either could ascertain its meaning everything went black, before turning a stark, bland white, blindingly bright, stabbing at their eyes with its intesnity. It didn't take them long to realize where they were. This was the soul of some human, the same human Kuchiki Rukia had just injected her powers into.

"Huh," Snakey glanced around anxiously, and when he found nothing in the blank void, gave a weak, expasperated hiss, "How the hell did we get dragged here, Chimpette?"

"Does it look like I know?" Chimpette turned around, her back to Snakey. "Anyway, I don't like it here, I say we leave."

"I'm with ya on that."

However, scarcely had they taken five steps in the opposite direction, then they ran smack into....

A wall.

"Itei!" Snakey yelped, rubbing at the space between his eyes. "My nose!"

"You don't _have_ a nose." Chimpette sighed wearily.

"I do too!" Snakey whined angrily. "See? It's right here!"

"Well, then its too small for me to see it! If I can't see it, then you don't have one!"

"Do not!"

"Do too!"

"Do not!"

"DO TOO!"

"O-Oi!"

"WHAT?!" They both snarled, before realizing there was someone else in here with then,

Startled, the pair whipped around, to find themselves confronted with an orange haired youth. He looked just as surprised to see _them_, as they were to see him. For a moment, everyone was just too dumbstruck to speak, but the silence had to be broken sooner or later.

Snakey was the one to do the honors.

"Oi, yourself dumbass! Who in the hell are you?!"

The youth sputtered furiously for a moment, before his chestnut brown eyes narrowed dangerously. Chimpette arched an eyebrow as he stalked right up to them, and grabbed Snakey by his collar.

"I could ask you the same thing, snake boy."

"NANI?!

"Do I need to repeat myself?" Ichigo countered with a scowl, his face dangerously close to the little hebi's.

Amused, Chimpette snickered quietly.

"Seriously, what's your name, gaki?"

"Kurosaki Ichigo." The youth replied warily, turning his gaze towards back towards her as he release Snakey. "And like I said before, who in the hell're you guys? A ghost or something?"

Snakey and Chimpette exchanged an irritated glance.

"What the hell."

"He's just a human. It's not like he'll be able to hear it anyway."

"Fine."

They exchanged a nod.

"We're the zanpakutou Zabimaru. We're supposed to be a soul reapers blade."

Ichigo blinked, then nodded.

"_Zabimaru,_ huh? Nice to meetcha. I guess you're my sword then."

Snakey hissed in surprise, and Chimpette gaped in open disbelief as right then and there, Ichigo Kurosaki simply performed an about face, and began to walk in the opposite direction. He'd just heard their _name_, and now, he was on his way out to boot. The two stared after his retreating form for a moment longer, until he vanished, before finally recovering their senses.

"So, Chimpette," Snakey grinned, "You still think he's a dumbass?"

Her fist to his face answered in reply.

"OW! I SAID STOP THAT!"

--

Ichigo opened his eyes and appraised the approaching hollow quietly. It appeared confused by his sudden transformation, its head cocked slightly to the side, much like a sparrow would. However, the sword the boy now wielded did little to intimidate it, as the hollow immediately surged forward seconds later.

"Howl." Ichigo hissed, gripping the bright red hilt, unlocking his sword with a small click. Pointing his katana forward, running his index and pointer finger, then the entirety of his palm across the flat of the blade, a red glow filled and consumed the blade.

"Zabimaru."

Unaware of its impending demise, the ghoul rushed forward, eager to claim what it thought would be a relatively easy meal. Imagine its surprise when it instead toppled forward into the street, missing both its legs, as well as its right arm.

Ichigo now loomed over the creature, sporting a large blade with several pick like protusions on its edge. Before the hollow could even consider the possibility of lashing out with its remaining arm, the blade buried itself deep within the creature's skull.

Ichigo remained silent, but didn't hesitate. No sooner had the pike pegged blade sunk into the white porcelain mask, then he yanked it free, the segments conjoining once more to bifurcate the beast in two.

Purified, the beast began to dissolve.

_Ha! Now that's more like it. _It took him a few heartbeats to realize that he could now hear the two voices of Zabimaru inside his head. Ichigo watched it go for a moment, before quietly sheathing his blade.

"Well, that takes care of that."

**Sorry if Ichigo was a little, OOC there, but it'll be explained next chapter. Next time: Baka Yarou.**


	2. The Morning After?

_**Yes, this is short, but hey, I had to start somewhere. I have officially begun to update ALL my fics! Keep posted for updates!**_

_**The Morning After**_

(The next morning)

Ichigo awoke with a start, having been alerted by the buzz of the alarm clock. Muttering fouly about his apparent lack of sleep, he threw himself out of bed...then promptly fell back upon the pillows when something impacted his head. Stars exploded before his vision as he collapsed, swearing with such vehemence that even a sailor would blush.

"ITTEI!" A voice yelped, and through his dim sight, Ichigo could make out a familair figure, one who was now earnestly rubbing his sore forehead. "Watch where the hell you swing that head of yers!"

"It's your own fault, baka." A rich, female voice sighed.

And wouldn't you know it, at that very moment, his vision cleared up.

"EH?!" Ichigo cried incredously. There, sitting upon the bed, were Chimpette and Snakey, as if they were perfectly at home.

"Why the hell are you two still here?!"

"Idiot." Chimpette tsked, spitting out the reed that had been in her mouth. "You learned our name. _That's _why. What, you thought we'd just up and vanish?"

"Sort of."

WHAM!

"Ow!" Ichigo yelped, rupping the sore

Snakey nodded an affirmative, though he was still gingerly finger the red welt he'd received upon headbutting Ichigo.

Bemused, Ichigo could only kick himself for not remembering the events of last night.

He'd talked with Zabimaru until his eyelids had grown heavy and his mind numb, then left them with the promise to return as soon as he could. They'd both (begrudgingly) wished him well and sent him on his way to a late night's sleep. Now, they were in his room?! Still trying to absorb all this, as well as how he could possibly keep it a secret, Ichigo rolled out of bed to cast his zanpaktou a glare, only to be greeted with the unusual sight of a massive hole in his house. Or to be more precise, the massive hole in his _room_. It was huge and gaping, easily large enough for a truck to fit through.

"WHAT THE HELL?!"

"You _did _overdo it a little." Chimpette chastisted.

"That's more than a little!"

"Ichi-nii?" Yuzu's voice ran from outside. "Who're you talking to?"

"N-No one!"

With a stern glare to Zabimaru that said _hide_, Ichigo raced downstairs, and found it was just as bad outside.

"What the-

"I can't believe a truck crashed into the house....Murmured Yuzu, a look of open disbelief on her young face. Incredulous, Ichigo whipped his gaze around, only to find that his sister was staring up at the hole just like an innocent bystander. She wasn't even remotely injured!

"I'm more surprised that it didn't wake anyone up." Grumbled Karin, her backpack slung over her shoulder. Seeing that Karin was uninjured as well, and oblviously _ignorant _of the events of last night, Ichigo nearly did a double take, before forcefully biting his tongue and holding his words.

_'Truck? Don't they remember anything?'_

"Breakfast is ready!" Called their father, cheery as ever. With that, his sisters went inside, but Ichigo strayed for a moment longer, trying to figure out why on earth they didn't remember last night. His sisters were healed. The hollow was dead. And now, his zanpaktou, which Zabimaru had given him a very vague description of, was now harassing him at all odd hours of the night, morning, and day!

_'Did that shinigami do this...?'_

_Probably. _

_Yup, lard-ass is right, probably-OW!_

_I TOLD YOU NOT TO CALL ME THAT!_

Ichigo felt his skin crawl when he heard Chimpette inside his head, and now he outright sighed as he heard the two bickering inside his skull. As if things weren't getting weird enough, he felt the strangest inkling to look over his shoulder, even though he knew full well that there wasn't anything there. Still, the duo continued to squabble, and something told him they weren't going to be stopping anytime soon. The way things were going, he'd probably just be dragged into it, and then everyone would be staring at him while he shouted at himself. A certain song that involved the words 'They're coming to take me away' rang through his head.

Lovely.

_'Great...just great. I didn't ask for this!'_

_HA!_

Laughter was the immediate response, as Zabimaru had apparently stopped bickering with itself for the moment.

_Well too bad!_

_Yer stuck with us!_

_'...don't I know it.'_

After another moment, when no further answer was forthcoming, Ichigo shrugged.

_'Oh well. She probably went back to that Soul Society place. Fuckin' lovely! Now I can't ask her how to fix this!'_

_--_

Orihime was teenager who admired one person.

Kurosaki Ichigo.

Many people did not understand what she saw in him. She, with long, orange hair and steely violet eyes, who was so well endowed, she was practically a goddess. She, who had a serious crush on Kurosaki Ichigo.

Even in her school uniform, she had the looks to make the boys drool. But she was a clueless one at times, and did not understand this. The one person who was actually _unaware _of her feelings, had her heart.

Perhaps that was why she adored him so.

"G-Good morning Kurosaki-kun!" She half stammered, half chirped, as Ichigo walked into class, and was rewarded with a sleepy wave. He all but lurched to his usual desk, mumbling a greeting as he went.

"Morning." He yawned, taking his seat next to Chad and Keigo.

"You look terrible." Commented Chad, as the bell rang and the tedious lecture began.

"How are you feeling?" Asked Keigo in his usual way.

The sound of snoring reached their ears, for Kurosaki Ichigo lay facedown on his desk, sound asleep.

"Sleepy, it looks like." Commented Chad, as the door slid open.

"Oh, you can sit next to...Ichigo!" The teacher barked the last part to wake him up. Kursoaki jolted awake with a snort, and looked around sharply. He didn't usually fall asleep in class, which meant he was all but _exhausted _at the moment, and with good reason.

"Hmm?"

"Our new student will sit next to you." Stated the teacher curtly. "It will be _your_ job to show her around the school."

"But I-

"No butts! You fell asleep in my class for the third time, and that will be your punishment!"

Ichigo hung his head.

"Yes ma'am."

He tried to be positive as the door opened and the crisp sound of footsteps reached his a newbie wouldn't be that bad. Just tell them where the bathroom was, which way was where, and give em' a trusty school map. If only it were that simple. Ichigo's brown eyes tripled as he recognized the _student. _Said student now extended her hand in a friendly greeting, smiling brightly.

Even without her sash and hakama, he recognized her immediately.

_Eh? _Snakey tilted his head in confusion. _What's she doin' here?_

It was the shinigami!

"Hello there! My name's Rukia Kuchiki, nice to meet you!"

"You?!" Ichigo all but leapt from his seat, jabbing an acusatory finger towards the girl. "What the hell're you-

"Ahem."

He saw markings on her palm and glanced downward.

Written on her hand was:

**_Say a word and you're so dead._**

_Blunt and to the point._ Chimpette noted. _I like that._

Ichigo disagreed.

_"Why you little...?! WHY THE HELL IS THIS HAPPENING TO ME?!"_


	3. Wayward Blade

**_Sorry if this is short, EVERYONE! My computer is down, so im literally typing this on a friends comp. updates might not come for a bit, at least until i can get it fixed. Im REEAAALLY sorry about all this, but I'll do my best to get around to updating all my other stuff, as i have begun to do with my older stories 'Starting Over' and 'Curiosity' If any of you guys and gals wanna give a hand, then ur welcome to do so, but i might not be able to get back to u right away. I WILL however, give all of you a little heads up as to what to expect in this chapter:_**

**_Ownage._**

_**Howling Chaser**_

_(One week after Rukia's arrival)_

He'd said it many, many times before. And idle threat here and there, a half hearted curse when they got out of hand and pulled one of their many pranks on an unaware student, even an occasional mutter when they roused him from his slumber to ask him the most ridiculous of questions. But this time, _this time_, Kurosaki Ichigo really _was _going to kill his zanpakuto.

Zabimaru had disappeared.

_Again._

For the third time today, when Ichigo had transformed into a soul reaper, he found that his weapon was, of course, not belted to his hip as it should be, but _gone_, leaving only empty air behind in its place. They'd taken off again, probably in retaliation for the swift mental rebuke he'd given them during English class. And as luck would have it, just as the bell rang for lunch, so too did Rukia's pager. So, instead of enjoying lunch and studying for finals like a NORMAL teenager, Ichigo was once again taking time out of _his _day, to exterminate hollows. He'd been in such a hurry this time, that it hadn't occurred to him to check for the presence of his zanpaktou. Naturally, he hadn't noticed their absence until _after _the hollow decided to ambush him.

Now, Ichigo bolted through the streets of Karakura, trying to avoid hapless passerby and keep the collateral damage to a minimum. The pair of hollow pursuing him however, did not take such precautions. He winced as a spray of timber peppered his back, suggesting that one of the beasts had just crashed through the patio he'd leapt over. He muttered an apology to the unfortunate owner, but kept on going, narrowly evading a swipe with a burst of shunpo, one of the few useful things his zanpaktou had actually deigned to teach him. It wasn't enough that his zanpaktou could manifest itself at will, or that they could go about their business without being seen by anyone other than Ichigo, oh no, whenever he took his eyes off them, which, considering the fact that he was a high-school student and a shinigami, was quite often; they would choose that exact moment of inattention to go exploring!

Rukia was going to _kill _him if she found out that he'd 'misplaced' his zanpaktou again. For the most ridiculous of reasons, she blamed _Ichigo _for constantly misplacing his katana. No no, she wouldn't listen, let alone believe that his zanpakuto had the annoying tendency to get up and simply walk away. The first time he'd told her the news he'd only earned a kick in the shin, followed by a lecture which mostly consisted of: 'As a shinigami it is your duty to be prepared for battle at all times' But the absolute, worst, freakin' part? Ichigo could never, ever, find his Zabimaru when they decided to go on one of their afternoon jaunts. So focused was Kurosaki Ichigo on exacting a long, painful, and well deserved punishment from his blade, that the youth hadn't realized where his legs where taking him until _after _he'd unwillingly returned to the Kurosaki household and all but slammed headfirst into the door.

Stars exploded before Ichigo's vision, then he was violently thrown onto the stone steps leading up to his home. For a moment, he lay there, wincing as the acrid taste of blood filled his mouth, and his body protested in pain. He'd been expecting his quarry to leap out from behind one of the many alleyways leading up to the house, but there was no sign of them.

For the smallest of seconds, Ichigo dared to hope that the hollow had given up their pursuit.

_"Giiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"_

An answering screech warned him otherwise.

"Shit." He spat around a bloody gob of saliva, growling as the shadow fell over him. Now, without a sword, there was supposedly little a shinigami could do against a hollow. Ichigo, having no such skill whatsoever pertaining to demon magic, was therefore forced to rely on a more...natural approach. He braced himself and took the stance that Tatsuki had taught.

The first hollow suddenly reared backward, screeching in agony as it clutched at the bloody stump that had once been its left arm. Seconds later, Ichigo rammed an open palm into the creature's face, breaking its mask like so much glass. With almost contemptuous ease, Ichigo now kicked the severed appendage aside, for it had already begun to disintegrate.

The second hollow was more wary than its brother. Having witnessed the destruction of its comrade, it now circled warily, refusing to come any closer for fear of the boy's fists. But now, Ichigo was positioned between the ghoul and _his home._ A grimace flickered across his visage when the hollow seemed to realize that its prey wasn't going to move. A low, throaty chuckle whispered across the air towards them, smug with satisfaction and confidence.

"Damnit." Unable to move, Ichigo splayed his arms wide, prepared to take the blow if necessary. "Just come on already!" Still, the hollow crept forward, the sly grin of its mask growing ever wider at the frustration of the helpless prey that lay before it. It came on at a heartbreaking pace, always wary, never drawing too close, still watchful of thos powerful fists.

It was right then that all hell broke loose.

From out of the clear blue sky, a red and white blur slammed into the hollows back with a gleeful giggle. It, the hollow, gave a keening wail of surprise, then toppled abruptly forward, its momentum upset by the intruder's weight. There was a blur of movement, followed by the rustling of chains as the interloper gracefully backflipped off the beast's sternum.

"Seems like you could use some help."

Ichigo, however, was less than thrilled.

_"YOU FUCKING IDIOTS!"_


End file.
